The Religious Right Turns 33: What Have We Learned?

As American Evangelicals have become more partisan, American Christianity has suffered as more shy away from the faith.

Many historians say the modern religious right was birthed in June of 1979. That was the month when the Rev. Jerry Falwell founded the Moral Majority, an organization tasked with saving the American public from the threat of moral decline. Not coincidentally, Concerned Women for America was formed the same month.

Previously, Evangelical Christians had been reticent to engage in partisan politics. But the cultural revolution of the 1960s brought on a blitzkrieg of social changes that left many religious conservatives feeling as if their way of life was being threatened. In response, the faithful flooded the public square — millions of them under the Moral Majority’s banner — to influence national elections and legislation. Standing tall at the helm of the movement was the silver-haired Falwell, a man whose presence could silence a room and whose rhetoric would often rouse it to raucousness.

I first met Jerry Falwell in 1999 when I was a senior in high school. My father, a pastor who was about to be elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention, drove me to Lynchburg, Va., at Dr. Falwell’s request. The preacher planned to convince me to attend Liberty University, a task which he executed masterfully. I would arrive at the Evangelical super-school as a freshman in a matter of months.

The most memorable portion of the conversation, however, had nothing to do with Liberty. It was when my dad asked Dr. Falwell how his ministry was going. The reverend’s jovial smile went somber and he leaned in closely:

“James, we’ve got the numbers. We’ve got the resources. We’ve got the leadership,” he said. “I’ve spoken to conservative Christians in churches all across this country, and they know what is at stake. We’ve got to get serious about Jesus, and we need to call this nation back to its roots. It’s time to stand for what is right.”

But then he added, “We’ve got to get our folks to the polls next year, and we need to do a better job telling people what will happen if liberal Democrats remain in control of the White House. We must save this nation!”

My brow furrowed. Even a 17-year-old realizes when someone’s answer doesn’t match the question. Dad asked Dr. Falwell about his ministry, and Falwell answered with a strategy for acquiring political power.

Before leaving Lynchburg, I shook the preacher’s hand, but I was unable to shake his comments. Our car rumbled back from the James River Valley to metropolitan Atlanta while I meditated on the reverend’s words.

Dr. Falwell said we needed to get serious about Jesus. I wanted to get serious about Jesus. He said we needed to call our nation back to its roots. I wanted our nation to return to its roots. Dr. Falwell said it was time to stand for what is right. I wanted to stand for what is right. But even then, my teenage mind wasn’t sure that he had effectively navigated how faith should mingle with politics. I’m even less sure today.

As we look back on more than a quarter century of political engagement by the religious right, two things now appear obvious.

First, partisan religion is killing American Christianity. The American church is declining by nearly every data point. Christians are exerting less influence over the culture than even a few years ago, organized religion no longer garners the respect of the masses, and two in three young non-Christians claim they perceive the Christian church as “too political.” Church attendance is declining, and the percentage of Americans claiming no religious affiliation is rising.

As sociologists Robert Putnam and David Campbell argue, the church’s partisan political alignment is at least partly to blame. In a recent article in Foreign Affairs they write, “In effect, Americans (especially young Americans) who might otherwise attend religious services are saying, ‘Well, if religion is just about conservative politics, then I’m outta here.'”

The question we must now answer is not, “Can we save this nation?” but “Can we save our faith?” And the only way it seems we will be able to do the latter is through abandoning the partisan, divisive strategies adopted by the Christian right and begin engaging the public again in more prudent ways.

Second, we learned that partisan Christianity cannot effectively change our culture. When the religious right formed, conservative Christians were energized around restricting abortion and same-sex marriage, reducing the size of government, and protecting religious freedom. More than a quarter-century later, these same debates innervate the movement. Little progress has been made despite their best efforts, and an increasing number of individuals now recognize the religious right strategy has largely been a failure. The irony of this turn of events is that Christians above all others know that true change must occur in hearts — not just the halls of power.

More than a decade after my first meeting with Jerry Falwell, I realize that the preacher was and is not alone in his approach to faith, politics, and culture. Many Christians believe our country is at a critical point in its history, and the responsibility to act rests on the religious community. So strong are these feelings that Christians have devoted a considerable amount of time and ministry resources to fighting the culture wars. This effort has failed to achieve the goals it set out to accomplish and has repelled an entire generation in the process.

If American Christians continue to see the culture wars as the primary way of shaping culture, they should expect to see their numbers decline and their influence wane. But if they wake up to our current reality and return to the foundations of their faith — love, compassion, and a rigorous commitment to the “Gospel” story that drives them to faith in the first place — the faith’s best days may yet lie ahead.

Jonathan Merritt is author of A Faith of Our Own: Following Jesus Beyond the Culture Wars (2012). He’s published more than 300 columns in outlets such as USA Today, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, and CNN.com.

3 comments on “The Religious Right Turns 33: What Have We Learned?”

Amen and Amen. Politics is not “The Gospel” (which is Christ dying for our sins, being buried, and rising from the dead according to Scripture [1 Cor 15:3, 4]).
As Christians, we are to preach Christ and Him crucified. Period. (1 Cor 1:21, 23, 29 and 1 Cor 2:2)
There is nothing else can change a man’s heart toward God Almighty.

Previously, Evangelical Christians had been reticent to engage in partisan politics. But the cultural revolution of the 1960s brought on a blitzkrieg of social changes that left many religious conservatives feeling as if their way of life was being threatened. In response, the faithful flooded the public square — millions of them under the Moral Majority’s banner — to influence national elections and legislation. Standing tall at the helm of the movement was the silver-haired Falwell, a man whose presence could silence a room and whose rhetoric would often rouse it to raucousness.

The Way Home

"Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls....."Jeremiah 6:16

"Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set"Proverbs 22:28

The Gospel

"If the professed convert distinctly and deliberately declares that he knows the Lord's will but does not mean to attend to it, you are not to pamper his presumption, but it is your duty to assure him that he is not saved. Do not suppose that the Gospel is magnified or God glorified by going to the worldlings and telling them that they may be saved at this moment by simply accepting Christ as their Savior, while they are wedded to their idols, and their hearts are still in love with sin. If I do so I tell them a lie, pervert the Gospel , insult Christ, and turn the grace of God into lasciviousness."

Study of Dispensationalism

"But there is further reason, and a pressing one today, why we should write upon our present subject, and that is to expose the modern and pernicious error of Dispensationalism. This is a device of the Enemy, designed to rob the children of no small part of that bread which their heavenly Father has provided for their souls; a device wherein the wily serpent appears as an angel of light, feigning to "make the Bible a new book" by simplifying much in it which perplexes the spiritually unlearned. It is sad to see how widely successful the devil has been by means of this subtle innovation." - by Arthur Pink

Sola Dei Gloria’s Position Concerning

What Is and is Not Replacement Theology?

"It is time to speak out because Christian Zionism has become a formidable and dangerous movement. By portraying the modern state of Israel as God's chosen people on earth, the role of the church has been reduced in the eyes of many to providing moral and biblical justification for Israel's colonization of Palestine. Those who oppose her are demonized. While not all Christian Zionists endorse the apocalyptic views of Hal Lindsey and Tim LaHaye, the movement as a whole is nevertheless leading the West, and the church with it, into a confrontation with Islam. Using biblical terminology to justify a pre-emptive global war merely reinforces stereotypes, fuels extremism, incites fundamentalism and increases the likelihood of a nuclear holocaust." ~Zion's Christian Soldiers

Covenants: The Train

Early Church Fathers

The Journey Project

Sermons

Preparation

"I feel I have a divine mandate to go and tell the people of this world that it is possible to be strong in the Lord Jesus Christ. We are in training for the great tribulation, but more than sixty percent of the Body of Christ across the world has already entered into the tribulation. There is no way to escape it. We are next."

Archives

Who’s Popping In

Visitors

Subscribe

Down in the human heart, crush'd by the tempter, Feelings lie buried that grace can restore; Touched by a loving heart, wakened by kindness Chords that were broken will vibrate once more. From the Hymn "Rescue the Perishing" by Fanny J. Crosby